


Protective

by PaisleyWraith



Series: KenMythology Universe [4]
Category: South Park
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-09
Updated: 2018-02-09
Packaged: 2019-03-16 02:04:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13626264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PaisleyWraith/pseuds/PaisleyWraith
Summary: When Kenny gets shoved into accidents that aren't his fault, people typically react one of three ways. Amused, indifferent, or annoyed. Kyle didn't act amused that Kenny can recall, but the indifference hurts almost as much.





	Protective

**Author's Note:**

> Something short, angsty, and admittedly a bit violent. Saeki-Miura of Tumblr sent in this suggestion, and here we are.

Kyle flipped through his book quickly. School was over, but he was missing the date for the first class’ assignment due to a stupid dentist appointment. He’d have to grab that from someone tonight. He didn’t miss assignments. Not now, not when high school was finally on the horizon. They were halfway through their school careers now, he felt like now was when it really started counting. 

He wished his friends would take things a little more seriously. Well. Friends meaning Stan and Kenny. Cartman could fuck himself, honestly. Kyle didn’t talk to him anymore, other than trading insults in every hall they happened to cross in. He despised the guy, their falling out had been loud and ferocious. Everyone knew who he was and what he was like, yet, somehow, he had more friends than Kyle.

Unfair, honestly. 

Stan at least was doing okay in school. Kenny didn’t seem to try most of the time, though Kyle rarely got into it with him. Kenny was already working, despite it being incredibly illegal. Saving money, working hard, he didn’t have a lot of time to study.

Kenny was the only person Kyle _ever_ allowed to copy homework, and only when crucial, and he could not tell Stan. Ever.

Kenny seemed to like the idea of a secret. The boy had looked up at Kyle with glowing eyes, holding out a pinky finger to link with dirty fingernails. “Oh, it’s a promise.”

Admittedly, he found it cute enough to go through with it. Kenny still acted like a kid, and…okay. It was cute. He was cute.

Kyle was tallest of the trio. Kenny was smallest, shorter than Kyle by about four whole inches, tiny and dirty and a massive flirt. Kyle didn’t like to think about that aspect for some reason, he got irrationally irritable when Kenny flirted around, and particularly hated when it was directed at him. It made him feel weird, twisted up his insides into something uncomfortable.

He found he liked watching him, however. Just keeping him in the corner of his eye or listening to his filthy jokes traded with an eye-rolling Stan was somehow comforting. Kenny was frustrating and comforting all at once somehow.

He came up behind the kid and lightly kicked the back of his shoe, crossing his arms. Kenny turned around from his locker, brightening.

“Ky!” He greeted cheerfully, “What’s up?”

“Clyde said you were looking for me,” Kyle said, getting to the point. “I was at a dentist appointment this morning. What’s wrong?”

Kenny’s demeanor changed immediately. His smile dropped and he shrugged, easily. “It’s nothing, anymore. It was earlier this morning.”

The taller boy narrowed his eyes, looking down at Kenny. The kid still wasn’t acting right. “What was it?”

The blond was cringing, which worried him further. “Nothing.”

Nope. He wasn’t buying that. “He said he thought something happened to your sister you were so upset. Is Karen okay?”

“Karen’s fine,” Kenny said, arms crossed. He looked like he was struggling. It was so unlike Kenny, so disconcerting, that Kyle shoved harder.

“I’m not leaving,” Kyle leaned into his space, raising his voice. “You still look upset. Was it someone or some thing?”

Kenny grit his teeth and grabbed Kyle’s arm, nails clawing into his skin. His eyes were intense. “I don’t want to talk about it here.”

The change was so startling that Kyle’s heart skipped. He placed a hand over Kenny’s, gently detaching him.

“Okay,” Kyle glanced around, still with his hand on his wrist. “Get your stuff. I’ll walk you home.”

Kenny’s smile broke over his face again, and he shuffled through his locker to heft up books he probably wouldn’t read a third of. “Yup. Ready.”

“Karen going to be coming with us?” Kyle asked, and Kenny brushed arms with Kyle with how close they were walking.

“She’s going to a friend’s house to play,” Kenny said, always softening at the mention of his sister. “She was real excited about it.”

“Good,” Kyle said, as Kenny quieted again.

They walked out of the school together, both silently. Kyle glanced at him, noting the lack of a backpack. Or jacket. It wasn’t that cold out but chill enough that Kyle was still wearing a sweater. Not to mention the kid looked (and smelled) like he hadn’t showered in a few days. That weird, twisted feeling was back.

Kyle swallowed. Then he reached out, took an armful of Kenny’s books from him, leaving him to carry the last two books and that was it.

Kenny raised his eyebrows, smiling over at Kyle with a tilted head. He was teasing him without saying anything at all, and Kyle didn’t want a comment on it. It just felt bad to make Kenny carry everything, whatever.

“What did you want to talk about?” The boy asked quickly, and Kenny’s solemn look returned.

“I told you it was nothing,” Kenny said, something hardened in his voice. “I was just upset, that’s it.”

He was upset and he looked for Kyle. Only Kyle wasn’t there. Kenny never came to him for help like that, never came to him for comfort, and something settled heavily on Kyle’s shoulders when he heard that.

“What upset you?” Kyle asked staunchly, raising himself to as tall as he could stand. “I want to know, Ken.”

“I’ve been keeping money,” Kenny blurted, darkness seeming to take over his face. His expression sneered, blue eyes dark. “In the house. From working. I give them most of it, but…not all of it.”

Kyle listened, staring. Kenny had to grab his elbow to keep him from being run down by a man on his phone on the sidewalk. Kyle glanced back at him as Kenny kept his hand in Kyle’s sleeve.

“They took it. Last night.” Kenny’s fingers tightened, constricting Kyle’s arm in the twisted sleeve. “All of it, everything I’d been saving.”

“Shit, dude.” Kenny had been working for a year now, whatever he managed to save was just gone like that? Though. “Was it…like people around your place…” Kenny had some unpleasant people who hung around his house, people Kyle would rather not get near.

“…My parents,” Kenny confessed, voice impossibly quiet.

Kyle’s eyes widened, heart dropping through the earth. “You’re kidding.”

“Nope.” Kenny’s expression was nasty. “I tried to get them to give it back.”

“How much was it?” Kyle said, gaze boring into Kenny.

“About three _hundred_ dollars,” Kenny’s voice wavered for the first time. “I’ve been working on it for ages. Saving it. For later.”

Kyle watched him. Again, that weird, unsettling dysphoria. Kenny and he lived such different lives. Yet Kenny saved up three hundred dollars, like a fucking adult, and the adults in his life let him down. Three hundred dollars might not sound like a lot, but they were twelve fucking years old. That was a shit-ton of money, particularly for Kenny.

Kyle stopped, shifting Kenny’s books to block his bath with an arm. His green eyes were fire. That wasn’t fair. And Kenny had come to him, for a result, for comfort, something and he wasn’t there.

“Have they spent it yet, do you think?” Kyle asked coolly, standing so close he was towering over the boy.

“…I don’t know,” Kenny was staring up at him, his angry expression replaced with confusion and… something.

“Take it back,” Kyle told him, flushing under his own suggestion. “I’ll help you.”

“I- they’ll just take it again,” Kenny stammered. “They’re good at sniffing out money.”

Kyle should shut up. He really should. “So I’ll keep it for you. This is fucking stupid, let’s go fix it.”

“I didn’t ask you to fix it, man,” Kenny protested weakly. “I just…I was just…”

Kyle stepped even closer, until Kenny had to tilt his chin up to look at him. Something about that shook him, filled him with something protective and warm.

“I’ll help you,” Kyle told him firmly. He’d wait for Stan but in the case that his parents wanted to use the money, they should probably act as quickly as possible. “Let’s do it now.”

Kenny inhaled, eyes unblinking. Thinking.

“Okay,” He finally said, straightening. “Alright. But if I tell you leave, you leave. Okay?”

“Okay,” Kyle agreed, brows furrowing. “Why?”

Kenny said nothing, merely grabbed Kyle’s hand and tugged him back down the sidewalk.

Yes, he wouldn’t normally let someone hold his hand, much less a boy, much less let a boy drag him down the sidewalk for everyone to see. But it was Kenny, and Kyle let Kenny do shit he wouldn’t let other people do. Just due to their shared history. Because he’s known him forever and Kenny was Kenny.

The boys walked across the train tracks together, dropping Kenny’s books under his window.

“We can go straight into their room,” Kenny said, voice lowering to something collected and dark. “And look there. If someone shows up, you leave.”

Kyle was about to protest when someone behind them spoke.

“Boy!”

Both students jumped, turning around together to see one of the ‘tenants’ of the McCormick garage blearily staring them down. He was one of the druggies, for certain.

“Go home,” Kenny whispered to Kyle. “What?” He said louder, an odd twang in his voice, like when he faked a drawl to make Kyle threaten violence against him.

“Haven’t got my money,” The guy said, stumbling on his feet like a man in the dark. “Got the stuff, where’s the money?”

“Yeah, I’m not Tweek, sorry.” Kenny shoved Kyle with his full body, eyes on the man. “I’m sure the delivery boy will be here soon. _Go_ ,” He told Kyle, hissing between his teeth.

Kyle didn’t like how the man was looking at Kenny. He didn’t move, reaching to rest his hand on Kenny’s shoulder.

“Yer blond,” The man sneered. “That’s who they said to look for. So where’s the cash?”

Kyle took a step away, but pulled Kenny with him. They could go to his house for a while, wait for this guy to settle down.

“Quit fuckin’ moving!” The man told Kyle now, making Kenny stiffen, and Kyle saw him bring out a knife. He pointed it in punctuation. “Give me the money, or I gut the ginger. Right now. Hand it over.”

Kenny stepped in front of Kyle, the redhead easily able to see over his head. “Don’t. I’ll get you the money, it’s fine.” He elbowed Kyle, but he didn’t even have time to think about moving.

“Good. Give it to me,” The man said, eyes staring crazily at Kyle through lank hair.

Kyle pressed his palm against Kenny’s back. For really no reason, maybe to give comfort or seek comfort. Whatever the reason, it seemed to solidify Kenny’s resolve.

“Kyle, go home,” His voice held a startling amount of power. “I’ll talk to you in a second, get out.”

“No, no, no,” The man shook his head, far more than the gesture needed. “Ginger stays, and I’ll stick ‘im. I promise. You have ONE MINUTES,” He shouted incoherently. “Give me the delivery!”

He didn’t give them more than a second. He ran forward, getting as far as grabbing Kyle’s sweater before Kenny flew into action. Kyle grabbed the man’s wrist and tried shoving him away and Kenny took him down. The tiny, scrawny little thing took the man to the fucking ground, screaming, something ringing in Kyle’s ears.

“Kenny!” Kyle almost didn’t recognize his voice, terrified. Terror, and then suddenly nothing. He saw nothing, felt nothing. Then. 

Annoyance.

Peace.

Kyle sighed, leaning against the house. The man stumbled off, face bloodied so badly he couldn’t see, collapsing a few feet away. Panting, whimpering, Kenny rolled over.

He clutched at his abdomen, red and oozing insides spilling out of a gash, pushing against the cut as if his skin was too small to hold them in. His entrails were pale pink, stuck with grass, and Kyle didn’t even blink.

Kenny was gasping, eyes wide, twitching. “Ky,” He called, hands trembling where they tried to keep himself together. Blood smeared all over his hands. “Ky, please.”

Kyle looked at him, disinterested. Everything was fine and normal, his mind told him soothingly. He was more bored than anything.

Kenny grit his teeth, arching his back against pain. "DO something!" He pleaded, whimpering, eyes filling with tears. "Care, god-goddamn it. Look at me."

Funny, he was. Kyle cocked his head, mildly annoyed. What was he crying about? Everything was fine. Kenny choked as he saw his expression change, lip trembling. 

“Go home,” Kenny pleaded. “Please go home,” Tears finally spilled down his face. His voice rose with fear and frustration. “It’s gonna take me a while. Get out.”

That’s right. What was he doing here anyhow? He couldn’t even remember. He didn’t like it over here, it caused him to feel a lot of things he still couldn’t puzzle out.

“See you, Kenny,” He said, walking away unscathed. Kenny said nothing, twitching. Before he walked away, he saw Kenny yank out of the corner of his eyes, and the screams followed him.

He picked up his backpack from where he left it by Kenny’s dropped books. He ignored the sudden quiet, ears ringing in the silence, as he slowly walked home.

He still felt something. Odd, like he forgot to do an assignment, or feed a goldfish, or ask for something from the store. Something he should have done, had consequences for not doing, but over the steady hum of contentment in his brain, walked back home without turning around again.


End file.
